Chapter Forty-Two: Edible Quartz

Heath stood in the kitchen, deep in thought. It had to be said that the old Officer Jenny’s request was quite a challenge. Of course, it wasn't impossible; after all, Heath had noticed that the canteen here was stocked with glutinous rice.

Glutinous rice fit the old Officer Jenny’s requirements perfectly: it was soft, easy to swallow, and could be prepared as a sweet dish. As for the meat, he could cut it into small pieces, cook it in a sweet and sour glaze, and wrap it inside the rice. This preparation reminded Heath of the sticky rice balls he used to buy on the streets back in the day.

"Oh well, these ingredients aren't exactly abundant. While I could make something else, those dishes take too long to prepare, and I’m afraid the customer wouldn't want to wait that long." After surveying the canteen's supplies, Heath quickly made up his mind.

There were many dishes one could make with glutinous rice, but since he needed to satisfy a craving for something sweet, he thought sticky rice balls would be excellent. Alternatively, he could consider sticky rice chicken, which had a very pleasant flavor—one that Heath himself quite enjoyed.

Sticky rice balls required no real culinary expertise. Heath didn't even feel the need to call out his Farfetch'd to help. With a few quick movements, he finished the dish and brought it out to the old Officer Jenny, who was waiting for him.

"Please be careful, it might be hot," Heath said with a smile. The old Officer Jenny examined the food curiously. She had never seen this dish before, but judging by the texture of the outer layer, it was clearly glutinous rice. She just wasn't sure if it would satisfy her requirements.

She picked up a rice ball, blew on it, and then carefully took a bite. The sweet, chewy texture instantly flooded her taste buds. With the next bite, she tasted the meat—prepared in a unique way, incredibly tender and coated in a sweet and sour sauce. The old Officer Jenny couldn't help but give him a thumbs up.

"Young man, your cooking is excellent. Better than mine, even," she praised. Heath’s culinary skills were truly beyond reproach; even the old Officer Jenny, who had started learning to cook after retiring, couldn't match his talent.

"Thank you for the compliment," Heath replied with a smile. His skills were indeed top-tier, but what pleased him most was that the progress bar for his "Chef’s Eye" task had increased. At this rate, he could fully complete the task while in the Indigo League, which made him quite excited.

Heath was very curious about how he would change after obtaining the Chef’s Eye and what functions it would have. He looked forward to it immensely, feeling that it might represent a qualitative leap for him.

"Not bad at all. No wonder you were asking about the specialty ingredients of the Indigo League... I can't find a single fault in your cooking. Keeping this thing with me is probably less useful than it would be in your hands," the old Officer Jenny said with a smile before standing up.

Heath looked at her curiously. Was she planning to give him something?

"Wait here a moment. I’m old, and I don't carry that thing around with me," she said cheerfully before walking into the teleportation pad and vanishing. Heath waited patiently.

After a while, the old Officer Jenny returned, holding a piece of quartz. It wasn't very large, about the size of an apple.

"Is this..." Heath felt a surge of surprise. Could this be the quartz the old Officer Jenny had mentioned? The specialty ingredient of the Indigo League!

"Yes, this is the specialty of the Indigo League: edible quartz. However, the method for preparing it has been lost. I have studied it for a long time but never found a way to cook it," she sighed, placing the quartz in front of Heath.

Heath instinctively pulled out his ingredient identifier; the device was ready to use.

The corners of Heath’s mouth twitched. The good news was that it was indeed edible quartz. Although it was toxic, it proved he hadn't been looking in the wrong place; he had truly found the specialty ingredient of the Indigo League.

The problem was that the cooking method was extremely demanding, requiring immense psychic power to distort and remove the toxic components. Just how powerful was "immense" according to this scanner? Could a Pokémon like Alakazam meet the requirement? Heath was a bit confused.

"Can you give this to me?" Heath asked, looking at the old Officer Jenny with excitement. This item was hard to find, and now that one was right in front of him, he didn't want to let it go.

"Of course I can!" the old Officer Jenny said with a smile. Heath grabbed the quartz immediately, but then he hesitated.

Heath wasn't a fool; he knew that in this world, nothing was given for free unless it was from family. Such an act of gifting a precious item often hid a corresponding price.

"So, what is the cost?" Heath asked, looking at her.

"All of this," the old Officer Jenny said, spreading her arms wide. Heath gulped. He was genuinely worried that she might pull off a mask to reveal Gul'dan’s face or offer him a cup of suspicious green liquid.

Fortunately, she did no such thing; she simply held her arms open as if embracing the entire canteen.

"?" Heath mentally typed a question mark.

"I would like to trouble you to take over the responsibility of preparing breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the Officers Jenny during your stay in the Indigo League. In return, this piece of quartz is yours," she explained. Heath rubbed his chin.

There were many Officers Jenny in the Indigo League, so he didn't know exactly how large the portions would be, but it certainly wouldn't be easy. Preparing three meals a day was a high demand. However, he really didn't want to give up the quartz; it was a rare ingredient, after all.

"Just dinner. I have to go out and run my stall during the mornings and afternoons," Heath said, shaking his head. Three meals was too much, but he could manage dinner.

"Deal!" The old Officer Jenny happily extended her hand, and Heath instinctively shook it. But for some reason, he couldn't shake the feeling that he had been tricked. Why on earth did he feel that way?

Heath walked out of the Officers' dormitory in a daze. He had reached an agreement with the old Officer Jenny: the ingredients would be provided by the Officers, Heath would only be responsible for dinner, the contract would last until he left the Indigo League, and the payment was, of course, the quartz.